Brody queues the next track, and the bass drops. We go again, and the last thought in my head before the ropes start flying is the simplest one I’ve had all morning: She kissed all three of us last night, and none of us have recovered. That’s not a coincidence but a beginning.
13
CLAIRE
My body is staging a mutiny, and I don’t know why.
I woke up aching. Not sore muscles or slept-funny pain, but the deep, bone-level throb I remember from the weeks after Louis left. That hollow, gnawing pull in the center of my gut that made me curl into the fetal position at two a.m., clutch my pillow, and hate myself for missing a man who didn’t deserve me.
Except I don’t miss that asshole. So why is my body acting as if I’ve just recently separated from an Alpha?
I lie on the couch in an oversized T-shirt and sleep shorts, glasses on, chai tea steaming on the side table. And I keep catching faint traces of scents that aren’t in my house. Hickory wood. Spearmint. Coconut. It’s as if the three men next door left residue on my nervous system after our kiss last night, and my body can’t stop longing for more.
I hate that my biology makes me so wired for Alpha proximity that it turns me into a trembling, needy wreck. The presence of an Alpha always settles an Omega, and without it, everything feels like it’s flowing in the wrong direction. Is that why I’m feeling so off today?
I grab my phone, take a sip of chai, and do what any self-respecting, anxious Omega does when her body is doing inexplicable things.
I Google it.
Fifteen minutes later, I’ve abandoned Google and landed in the forums forThe Heat Line, an Omega radio show that also offers an open community forum where Omegas share experiences, and there’s an entire thread titled “Withdrawal Symptoms After Alpha Contact: Real or Am I Losing My Mind?”
The title alone makes me feel seen.
I scroll.
OmegaJade92:After my breakup, I was fine for months. Then I went to a party, danced with an Alpha, and the next day, I swore I’d caught the flu. Aching, sweating, couldn’t eat. My doctor said prolonged absence from Alpha contact can make an Omega hypersensitive when re-exposed. Our biology basically goes dormant and then wakes up swinging.
Well, that’s comforting.
HeatSeekerAnon:This happened to me after I spent a very close weekend with a guy I was seeing. We didn’t bond, but we slept together. When I went home, my body crashed. The cravings were insane, and my therapist called it a “scent hangover.” Basically, my Omega receptors light up around compatible Alphas, and then when they’re gone, my system demands more.
Maybe I’m experiencing a scent hangover from three Alphas I kissed last night and spent time with at the wedding.
LunaPackless:Has anyone experienced this with multiple Alphas? I’m talking about being around a pack and then coming home alone and feeling like your bones are dissolving?
Yes, Luna. Yes, I have.
Raven:I was told by a doctor that the body interprets the absence as a loss and begins producing hormones to draw theAlphas back. This can also occur when an unbonded Omega is approaching a natural heat cycle.
I set the phone on my chest and stare at the ceiling, pondering. I haven’t had a heat since Louis left months ago. My cycle went dormant after the breakup, which my doctor said was normal under stress, and I’d been grateful for it. One less thing to manage while my life was disintegrating. But if the proximity to three compatible Alphas has kick-started what’s been lying dormant…
“Nope,” I say aloud to my empty living room. “We’re not doing this. That is a future Claire problem, and present Claire is going to drink her chai and not think about it.”
I scroll further.
ScentSickSally:The ache gets worse the more compatible the Alpha is. My scent match showed up at my workplace, and I couldn’t function for three days afterward. My body was basically screaming “FIND HIM” every waking second. I turned into a stalker!
I giggle because it’s so insane what our bodies do. “That’s not me,” I mutter, taking another sip. “I’m perfectly fine.”
The ache in my abdomen pulses, and I shift on the couch, then press my thighs together. The heat flares. I set the chai down because my hands are shaking.
I’m clearly not fine.
My phone rings, and I nearly launch off the couch.Katie. Thank God.Someone to drag me out of the hormone spiral.
“Morning!” Her voice is vibrating with energy. “What’s the tea from last night? Tell me everything.”
“Well, it was interesting. That’s for sure. My parents were there and?—”
